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Ben and Me
Ben and Me is a 20-minute, later 25-minute animated short based on the book of the same name by Robert Lawson. It was released on November 10, 1953 alongside The Living Desert, later on May 30, 1989. Synopsis Ben and Me opens with two tour groups simultaneously visiting a statue of Benjamin Franklin. The human tour group discusses Franklin's life and achievements, while the leader of a mouse tour group reveals the contributions of a mouse, Amos, to Franklin's career. Narrated by Amos, through his memoirs, the mouse recalls how he first met and befriended Benjamin Franklin, eventually aiding in his publishing, inventions, and political career. Amongst Amos' contributions were bifocals, inspiring Franklin to build the stove, and changing the format of Poor Richard's Almanac to an event-oriented newspaper, the Pennsylvania Gazette. After Ben's experiments with electricity unintentionally endanger Amos' life, Amos leaves Ben and moves back in with his family. Years later, Amos hears of Franklin again when he read from the newspaper that the inventor was sent to England as part of a colonial attempt to reason with the king over the unfair taxations imposed on the colonies. The mission is a failure, as Franklin says on his return, "The King was unreasonable. He wouldn't listen." Amos, seeing this- and the confusion and anger of the colonists- realizes he could help, but initially refuses. Amos and Franklin finally resolve their disagreements in the midst of the American Revolution, and in the end, Amos plays a key but little-known role in aiding Thomas Jefferson with the drafting of the Declaration of Independence. Deleted scenes (extended version of the animated short film) Some prints of this cartoon are missing scenes telling about Amos Mouse's family. These sequences were created for the short's presentation in "The Liberty Story ", later the extended version in 1989; :1. Christopher Mouse and his family of 24 moved to London from Devonshire and settled in the cellar of bakery on Fleet Street. While Christopher gathering flour in the sack, he is caught by a fat cat (resembling Lucifer from Cinderella) he blows the flour to the cat and chased Christopher, until he made it in the cellar. :2. Arrowdus Mouse sails through Thames River in a teacup. :3. Aloycius Mouse working as a painter under the tutelage of famous German painter Hans Holbein. :4. Jason Mouse fighting for the mice's rights and moved with his family onboard the ship Mayflower to the new land America called Plymouth Colony in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Cast *Sterling Holloway as Amos (Narrator) *Charles Ruggles as Benjamin Franklin *Hans Conried as Thomas Jefferson/Thief *Bill Thompson as Governor Keith/Creditor/Parrot/Tour Guide *Stan Freberg as Mouse Tour Guide Releases Television *''Donald's Quack Attack'', episode #94. Home video VHS * Walt Disney Mini Classics: Ben and Me * Walt Disney's Fables: Volume 3 DVD * Walt Disney Treasures: Disney Rarities * Walt Disney's Timeless Tales: Volume 3 * Walt Disney's Fables: Volume 3 Gallery Screenshots Ben and me 5large.jpg Tumblr n3n4osiFP21qhcrb0o1 1280.jpg Ben and me 6large.jpg|Meeting Ben 1953-franklin-2.jpg Ben and me 7large.jpg|Amos fixes Ben's glasses Ben and me 8large.jpg 1953-franklin-3.jpg Ben and me 9large.jpg|Everyone reading the Pennsylvania Gazette Tumblr n16gkaxjOZ1qhcrb0o1 1280.jpg 1953-franklin-4.jpg Ben and me 10large.jpg Eimages.jpg|Amos not happy Ben and me 11large.jpg|"Was it electricity!?" Tumblr_mo7r5adrxA1qhcrb0o1_1280.jpg Ben and me 12large.jpg Ben and me 13large.jpg Ben and me 14large.jpg|Signing of the Declaration of Independence Tumblr mw1bxxCiMh1qhcrb0o1 1280.jpg Miscellaneous 1953-franklin-5.jpg|Deleted scene 1953-franklin-6.jpg 77C34VL00-2.jpg 72604729.jpg 72604719.png 72604708.png Tumblr n41a3e6Tct1rnsw9qo1 500.jpg Tumblr nqw5035bVh1sa3t1go2 1280.jpg Tumblr nqw5035bVh1sa3t1go1 1280.jpg Tumblr nqw42zSeMK1sa3t1go2 1280.jpg Tumblr nqw42zSeMK1sa3t1go1 500.jpg Tumblr nqw4n4XJ1a1sa3t1go1 500.jpg ar:أنا وبين ru:Бен и я Category:Animated shorts Category:Films based on books Category:1953 shorts Category:Ben and Me Category:Featured shorts Category:Academy Award nominated films